Aporeu chronicles Issue 43: Family trouble,Seeking mediation
Stories from the adventurers
This week
Short introduction
Unless they hurt my friends and family. Then they should suffer.
Mr. Matt tells Mr. Quen that he should be looking for an 'enforcer', because he got Ms. Denise knocked up.
I ask what an enforcer does, and everybody says that I can't do that, because people I stab tend to not survive. And dead people can't pay their bills. Which makes sense.
But I agree that if people don't pay back what they owe you, you should be allowed to remind them of it, and make sure they don't forget again.
After some more talking about what they would like us to find people for to help them, we're escorted outside again.
Someone points at the swooshlines up at the roofs, and before they can even say we can try them, I'm up there and zipping down one of them. It's a lot of fun!
Even more fun than when I was training at the Guild Hall, even. They said something more, but I couldn't hear what it was because I was swooshing down.
After that bit of fun, I clamber back down, and we make a plan for where to go to try and help the Family.
We visit someone I don't wanna name because he looked scary. He had gray skin and horns. He said he was from the Underdark, like Mr. Quen.
And I think he was like Mr. Vic, because he had some Goblins working for him. And they looked happy, so I'm sure he's nice to them.
He was kinda mean though, talking like we were Mr. Quen's property. But he got a lot nicer after Mr. Noaz and Ms. Phaedra offered him some good ideas for his workers.
We also get to take a bit of the things we're trying to sell, so people can see what they're buying. Which should help out a lot.
He also says that if we find smart people that want to work for him, we should let him know. But I think we all kinda forgot to be on the lookout for people like that.
As we're walking to our first stop, we see a naked Gnome hanging from a window, then drop down and run away when a Halfling man leans out the window and yells he's gonna kill him.
I think they should try to talk it out, but we're on a mission to help another family, so we can't take care of that right now. Maybe after we can see if they still need help?
We also find someone offering some gold if we solve a riddle. It's just a little bit of gold to try, so we all try a riddle. And everybody but Mr. Noaz gets their riddle right.
Family trouble,Seeking mediation by Q
(Editor's note: So, this Kobold just keeps popping out of the shadows in my office with a story for us to run. I.. I've given up trying to find where he comes from or where he goes.) For this mission, I'm helping a family! That's important, because family has your back, right? So you gotta help family when you can. And Mr. Quen is a stepbrother in this family! Anyway, I signed up because there was a small letter that asked for mediators. We meet up by Loïs' desk, who's talking about all kinds of things as she usually does. I'm going to be helping this family with Mr. Quen, Ms. Phaedra (Hi mom!), and Mr. Noaz. I knew everybody already! But Mr. Noaz is.. kinda strange? He said it was because he went to a party that messed with his head. I think it's because he didn't get enough sleep. Getting needled by Loïs about stuff probably didn't help any either. We go to Ms. Kiresri's office. She's kinda pouty that we're out in the hallway, and asks us to come inside. But we have to take off our shoes. But I don't wear any.. She cleans me up real quick anyway, and we talk a bit about Ms. Elveira not being there yet. She says that Denise/The Niece (Mr. Quen's fianceé) is having some trouble. And we're going to meet her at some place called "Stab Corner". And Ms. Kiresri asks us not to stab anybody. And then everybody looks at me for some reason. Mr. Noaz was being a meanieface, so I grab his left boot on the way out, and put it on Loïs' desk while he's looking silly with 1 boot on. Hopefully he'll stop being mean now. We head to the Qo'ren market, and see Ms. Denise chewing on a pickle at Stab Corner. She shows off her engagement ring, and gets a little off-track for a bit. I also learn that apparently, Dr. V proposed to Ms. Phaedra, but hasn't given her a ring yet! And I'd given him the perfect ring to use for it, too! We are led to The Family's office. There's lots of official looking people there, and guards. I hear there's less traps around this time. And apparently Mr. Vunderbarb's place has the door open. I think he was the one with the really big ballista on the roof during the first mission, where they named Stab Corner due to an unfortunate incident. Maybe he'd like to meet Mr. Rurik.. And now I'm getting off track. Sorry! We sit around a big table in the office, and Mr. Quen mentions a golden cage. And somehow there's some talk of fetishes.. Then Ms. Denise offers us all some green tea and a pickle. I enjoy the tea, but pass on the pickle. I had a good meal before I went on this mission. Ms. Denise is very proud of Mr. Quen, and she says The Family is working on a solution for their Gate problem. Ms. Phaedra apologizes every time Mr. Boris is brought up, but Ms. Denise doesn't seem to care. I think it's because she's pregant. Mr. Quen said she had some mood swings lately. I can see what he means.. No offense, Ms. Denise! You were really nice overall, and the tea was lovely! Anyway, they're overstocked on things, and she would like our help to find buyers for it. And they're also getting alcohol and tabacco. Seems Bob's farming is going pretty well. She also says that they're willing to buy 2nd hand armor and weapons, if the price is right. I think I should keep that in mind. She gives us some names for people that might want to buy the stuff they have too much of. While we're talking, Mr. Matt comes in with Ms. Elveira. It seems like they had a good time together, because they're laughing and seem happy. That's nice, people should be happy as much as they can.
Since we decided to go see Dr. V (Hi dad!) first, we head to the Drunken Sailor first. And I go in like I always do, while the rest takes the long way around.
Then Doc jokes about a naked Kobold in his room when Ms. Phaedra asks if he's decent. I wasn't naked, and I didn't see anybody else in the room, either.
Ms. Phaedra gives her things to Dr. V for alchemical testing, to see if it might be useful in elixirs, I think?
He also tells us about a few other people that might want to buy the things. And that one of them might need a bit of persuading to give us a fair price.
As we go find the person that needs some persuading, a strange lady with bear-like features asks me where the second moon is. So, I gently sit her down at the dock, and show her the reflection of the moon in the water.
But apparently, that's not what she meant. She says her name is Lenna, and she's a 'Thropian' from Lunara, and she went through the 'Skull Throne'. Which is what their Gate looks like, apparently.
She says she met with Ms. Milli, but can't get back. We say that we know someone that might be able to help, and Ms. Phaedra gives her some money so she can stay at the Guild.
She kept talking about how there was only one moon here. If I hadn't been through the Gate and seen strange worlds with my own eyes, I might've thought she was cuckoo.
I find an urchin to ask where we might be able to find a Mr. Windsor, who we need to convince to give us a good price for the stuff we wanna sell for the Family.
The kid tells us that Mr. Windsor does adult stuff with the baker's wife every Dosei. Which is today. So, we go over there to have a chat with him.
I open the door after making sure they're inside, and Mr. Quen does some magic to make himself look like an enforcer or something, then casts some magic in the room before he opens the door and negotiates a deal with Mr. Windsor.
He gets a pretty nice deal, I think, because he seems quite happy about it afterwards.
As we leave, a stray dog snarls at Ms. Elveira, and tries to bite Ms. Phaedra! Luckily, Mr. Quen does his magic and talks to the dog for a bit. There's some puppies outside that she's trying to protect.
I'm very glad that he did that, because I would've felt really bad stabbing the dog because it was trying to hurt us. Well, not at first, but after finding out there were puppies.
We head to the Minotaur Ale for some drinks and to discuss where to go next. And to make another deal. We get some drinks, and go on a little walk.
I think they did something to Mr. Noaz' drink, because he's acting really weird the whole time after we had it. Mr. Quen makes a pretty nice deal there too. And I can help with this deal, which is nice.
I'm gonna do my best to get everything I can do!
After that, we go to Mr. Kellick's place. Rodriguez welcomes us, and holds out a whip to us. I figure that's just what people do here, so I take it and whip him a couple times.
He likes it a lot, so I don't know why Ms. Phaedra made me stop. Probably because he needs to take us to Mr. Kellick so we can negotiate a deal with him, too.
He's sitting on a chair made out of people, and everybody's having a good time. Well, except us. Most people seem a little uncomfortable with everything.
So, while they're talking with Mr. Kellick, I take the whip again and hit Rodriguez for a bit while they're busy.
Mr. Kellick asks if I can't come work for him, because I'm doing really well. But Ms. Phaedra says that I can't, because I'm an Adventurer. Doesn't mean I can't come by to practice whipping people from time to time, though!
Ms. Elveira does some magic, and Mr. Kellick gives us a really good deal. He seems a little sad that we're going already, but it's late, and we kinda want to get some sleep before we check 2 more people the next day.
As we leave, we find a man that left his wallet at Ms. Shi'liane's place. So we give him directions to there. Ms. Phaedra doesn't wanna go there, and I've tried to avoid it as much as I can, too.
We all go home to get some sleep, and meet back up at the market the next morning, after some breakfast.
And so we have a good night's sleep, and meet back up, and decide to go visit Ms. Eleanor at the Traveling Hat shop.
She's a nice Dwarven lady, that dresses a bit like an Adventurer, but is way too nervous to actually be one. She sells a lot of stuff useful for traveling.
And some things that came from other worlds. We even see a pillow with a Lauzean pattern on it. That seems to have been meant for Ms. Phaedra, but never got to her..
We're offered some tea or 'kohfea'. I try some of that kohfea, but I'm not sure I like it. It's pretty bitter. Mr. Gaer wanted some of this?
Guess it's an acquired taste.
But, we manage to make a deal with Ms. Eleanor as well, and she seems very happy to have been able to hear stories from Adventurers themselves, instead of just reading them in the Chronicle.
Our last stop is Mr. Giselbert, a sculptor. On the way there, 2 Halflings come up and give Mr. Quen and Mr. Noaz a cigar, for 'real men', and they pass the test, apparently.
That was kinda weird. I'd be offended that they seemed to have not noticed me, if I didn't know I look like a little kid. And some people would argue that I still am a kid.
Anyway, Mr. Giselbert is working on some statues. There's one for Mr. Svæin, and one for Ms. Lilandra. Seeing as I saw 3 boobies on that statue, I think it's the same one that Doc talked about.
Mr. Matthew is also there, looking at some of the statues. Apparently, he's known for pleasuring himself a LOT.
We make a deal with him, and I offer him one of the pretty red gems I found out in the woods, to use in the eye he wants Ms. Phaedra to make for him.
He was impressed by Mr. Quen's glass eye, so he wanted Ms. Phaedra to show him how she made it, and I think he wanted her to make more like that for him.
We go tell Ms. Denise about all the deals we made for her to sell her stuff without being overstocked, and she seems really happy.
She pays us all a good amount of gold for helping the Family out.
And I'm gonna make sure I take care of my end of the bargain for what I can help with. Because family helps each other.
-Q-
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